Collapsible drawer



April 19, 1932.

L. H. MORIN COLLAPS IBLE DRAWER Filed March 6, 1929 2 Sheets-Sheet l :7, ZII:I:Z'LIIIIZZ:ZZL'L'IIIZLZI:I: I I I 1 h 14' a i :5 1

iNVENTOR Louis H. /V0rz'?z ATTORNEY Patented Apr. 19, 1932 U N l T E T QFFIC l 1") LOUIS H. MORIN, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., ASSIGNQR TO DOEHLER DIE-CASTIN G CO., A COR- PORATION OF NEW YORK COLLAPSIBLE DRAWER Application filed March 6,

My invention has particular reference to furniture of the knock-down type. The invention contemplates a construction in which all the advantages of the ordinary rigid fur- 5 niture of like kind are retained.

Furniture of the knock-down type besides being capable of compact arrangement for packing and shipping purposes should be so designed that it comprises such features 10 as simplicity and economy of manufacture, comprises a small number of parts, is readily assembled, provides a rigid, durable assem bled article, and presents an attractive appearance.

In accordance with my invention, I provide a collapsible drawer having all of the above enumerated advantages. The drawer of my invention is desirably, although not necessarily, constructed of metal. It is par- 0 ticularly applicable to be used with and con stitute a part of'any furniture piece having one or more drawers.

A detailed description of one embodiment of my invention will be given in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a side elevation of a drawer constructed in accordance with my invention Fig. 2 is a plan view'of the drawer shown in Figure 1 the broken linesrepresenting the surrounding structure of the article of furniture in which the drawer is used;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged plan view of part of the drawer broken away in parts to'show details of the structure;

Fig. 4 is a longitudinal vertical section of the drawer shown in Fig. 1; i

Fig. 5 is a transverse vertical section on the line 5-5 of Figure 4; I

Fig. 6 is a horizontal section on the line 66 of Fig. 4 of a part of. the drawer showing the connections between the front, back and sides;

Fig. 7 is a horizontal section of the corner construction of the front wall, showing'the right hand corner at the top; and

Fig. 8 is an elevation of the corner piece shown in section in Figure 7 as viewed from the right or inner side. 7

In the illustrated embodiment, the drawer comprises a bottom 1 formed from a single 1929. Serial No. 344,829.

piece of sheet metal. The bottom is bent downwardly at a right angle at the front end thereof to form an abutting shoulder 2 and then rearwardly for a substantial distance to form a flange 3 parallel to the bottom 1. Connecting pieces 4 are spot welded to the bottom 1, and constitute the means by which the rear and side walls are connected to the bottom. These connecting pieces 4 extend along the bottom for a substantial distance, are bent upwardly at a right angle at the edge thereof, extend in an upward direction for a substantial distance, and are reversely bent inward to form a downwardly opening vertical channel or groove 5. These separate marginal strips 4 on the bottom 1 form a reinforcement for the latter and for the drawer as a whole, as well as also facilitate manufacturing operations.

The rear and side walls are each formed separately from a single piece of sheet metal. At their lower edge, the rear and side walls are reversely bent outward to form upturned tongues 6 which cooperate with the downwardly opening grooves 5 formed by the cor.- responding connecting piece secured to the bottom.

The side walls 7 are bent inwardly near the upper edge thereof to form horizontal longitudinal channels 8 which extend along the full length of the side pieces. The channels so formed engage supporting bars 9 (Fig. 5) provided in the article of furniture in which the drawer is used and upon which the drawer slides. Immediately above the channel, and constituting the upper edge of the side wall, the upper side 10 of the channel forming the lower side thereof, the side walls are bent to form a bolt housing 11 for a through tie bolt 12. The bolt housing so formed is substantially square in cross section. Strips l3 bent to form spring-like clamping pieces are spot welded to the outer surface of the side walls, and serve to press overlapping flanges of the front and rear walls into direct contact with the side wall.

The rear wall 14, which has in elevation an outline conforming to the profile of the side walls, is reversely bent outward at its lower edge to form the aforementioned conalignment with the bolt side portions necting tongue 6. The upper edge of the rear wall is bent outwardly and downward around an oblong reinforcing rod or bar 15 provided therefor. Bolt holes, for the tie bolts 12, in housings 11 formed on the side walls, are drilled through the reinforcing rod 15 and the overlapping sheet metal. Flanges 16, cut away near the upper edge to provide cut-out portions correspondg to the channels in the side walls, are formed on the rear wall by bending extended forward at a right angle. The flanges so formed extend along the outer surface of the side walls, and they are retained in direct contact with the side wall by the aforementioned clamping pieces 13. Tongues 1'? stamped in the upper portion of the rear wall and bent forward at a right angle thereto serve with the upper portion 18 of the flange 16 to form a receptacle for the ends of the bolt housings 11 formed on the side walls.

The tubular housing 11, together with the channel 8, forms a strong and rigid reinforcement along the upper edge of the side wall 7. Also the top of this hollow reinforcement presents a. smooth flat surface upon which fabrics can not catch or become torn, as well as, by its width, enhancing the appearance, in simulation of wood.

The front wall 19 which is made to present the appearance of wood extends beyond the side walls to give the semblance of appreciable thickness. At the side edges, the front wall is bent rearwardly at an acute angle forming a part 20 converging toward the side wall. At the side wall the converging portion 20 is bent at an obtuse angle to form the flange 21 which extends along the outer surface of the side wall and is engaged by the forward clamping strip 13. A corner piece comprising a strip of relatively heavy sheet metal 22 shaped to fit the corner formed by the front wall and the converging side portion 20 and a nut 23 secured thereto is spot welded to the front wall in alignment with the respective bolt housings 11 on the side walls, so that the tie bolts 12 screw into the nuts 23. The corner pieces provide abutments for the forward ends of the bolt housings 11. A portion 24: of the sheet metal corner piece 22 is bent at a right angle thereto and extends along one face of the nut 23 which is square in cross section and serves to prevent the nut 23 from turning in its socket. At the lower ec ge the front wall is bent rearward and upward toward the bottom. A connecting piece 25 which is reversely bent at an acute angle to form a hook-like engaging end piece 26 is spot welded to a lower rearwardly bent or flanged extension 27 of the front wall. This connecting piece 25 engages the flange 3 formed on the front edge of the bottom in the assembled position of the drawer. Forming the hook-shaped connecting piece 25 as a separate strip, not only facilitates manufacture but makes a stronger detachable hook joint connection of the front wall 19 with the bottom 1.

The tie bolts 12, which extend the entire length of the drawer, are inserted through the bolt holes provided in the rear wall, and extend within the bolt housings 11 to engage the nuts 23 secured to the corner piece 22 in the front wall 19. These bolts 12 constitute the final means relied upon to hold all of the above described interengaging separately formed parts or sections of the drawer to gether in assembled relation, thereby to form a firm and rigid unitary drawer.

Assume that the drawer is assembled as shown in Figures 1 and 2. To knock down the drawer, the bolts 12 are removed, the front wall is swung outwardly and the connecting piece 25 disconnected from the web 3, the sides are drawn forward, the tongues 6 sliding in the grooves 5, and finally the rec wall is drawn sideways and disconnected from the bottom. To assemble the drawer the reverse of the above is performed.

It is obvious that various changes may be made in the embodiment shown in the drawings and above particularly described, within the principle and scope of my invention as expressed in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. In a knock-down drawer, a separable side wall made from a single piece of sheet metal havin a supporting channel formed in the upper portion thereof, a housing formed by bending the upper edge, the lower side of said housing constituting the upper side of said channel, and an upturned tongue formed on the lower edge.

2. In a knock-down drawer, front, rear and side walls, flanges on said front and rear walls overlapping said side walls, and clamping strips on said side walls engaging said flanges.

3. A knock-down drawer comprising inclividually separable bottom, front, rear and side walls, longitudinal bolt housings formed on the upper edge of the side walls, internally threaded corner pieces secured to the front wall in alignment with said housings, a reinforcing rod secured along the upper edge of the said rear wall having therein bolt holes in alignment with the said corner pieces, and tie bolts extending through the bolt holes in the reinforcing rod and engaging said corner pieces.

4:. A knock-clown drawer comprising a bottom, side and rear walls having a detachable interlocked sliding tongue and groove connection therewith, a front wall having a de tachable hook connection with the bottom upon which it may be swung outwardly, internally threaded corner pieces secured to the upper portion of the said front wall, bolt housings formed on the upper edge of the said side walls in alignment with the said corner pieces, and tie bolts extending through the said rear wall within said housings and engaging the said corner pieces, whereby upon removal of the tie bolts the drawer may be separated into five sections comprising the bottom and the four said walls.

5. In a knock-down drawer, an individual: 1y separable side wall including a single piece of sheet metal bent to form a supporting channel in the upper portion thereof, and being further bent to form a bolt housing along the upper edge thereof, and a bolt passing through the housing to secure the side wall in place at its upper edge.

6. In a knock-down drawer, a sheet metal bottom bent downwardly at the front edge thereof to form an abutting front shoulder and then bent rearwardly from the said shoulder to form a flange beneath the bottom, and separate reinforcing strips for the bottom secured to the rear and side edges thereof and forming connecting pieces which are bent first upward and thence inward and downward to form downwardly opening vertical grooves.

7. In a knock-down drawer, a sheet metal bottom bent downwardly at the front thereof to form an abutting front shoulder and then bent rearward from such shoulder to form a flange beneath the'bottom, a front wall having an extension bent rearwardly at the lower edge thereof in the form of a flange, and a separate strip forming a connecting piece so cured to the said extension and this strip having an upturned hook to engage with the said flange on the bottom.

In witness whereof, I hereunto subscribe in signature.

y LOUIS H. MORIN. 

